Chapter 7
Reina
Morgan texted me this morning, letting me know that I could expect a truck to be delivered to the house today.
After the first night I moved in, he'd been working late and leaving early in the morning so that we almost never crossed paths.
I wasn't sure if that was on purpose or if it was his usual work schedule. And I didn't have anyone to ask.
I hoped I wasn't making him uncomfortable.
Maybe I should've looked for another place to stay.
The problem was that most of the other shop owners lived in small one-bedroom or studio apartments above their stores or had moved in with their significant others.
I didn't want to intrude on a new-couple situation.
I thought it would be complicated to live with Morgan, but he was making it easier by making himself scarce.
I suspected the truck was his way of not having to drive me everywhere. But it meant that I could get to the town hall's kitchen today without begging for a ride from someone. So I was grateful.
I'd focus on building my catering and online ordering business. The sooner I could get a place of my own, the better.
I showered and made breakfast, sipping my coffee while I waited for the truck to arrive. When the truck pulled in, Cooper was driving, and another Sterling truck pulled in behind him. He came to the door and knocked.
When I opened the door, Cooper handed the keys to me.
"I can't thank you enough for this."
He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "It was Morgan's idea."
"How much do you want for the truck? I could rent it until the bakery reopens."
Cooper chuckled. "It's a gift. Or at least that's what I think Morgan intended. He just said to bring you the truck, and here it is."
"Thank you for taking the time to drive it here. I wanted to get to the kitchen today to bake. My clients will appreciate that I'm able to keep up with their orders."
His brow furrowed. "How are you doing?"
"I'm okay. I wish it hadn't happened, but Morgan said the bakery will be better when it reopens."
"Yeah, he said you wanted to do some upgrades."
"I might as well get exactly what I want. And I have the catering business to keep me busy in the meantime. Otherwise, I'd be bored out of my mind."
He raised a brow. "How's it living with Morgan?"
I laughed. "Not bad since he's never here. I saw him the first night when I moved in, and that was about it. I had the girls over though, so maybe they scared him away. We baked chocolate chip cookies and drank wine. It was exactly what I needed."
He studied me for a second. "I wondered why Morgan's working long hours all of a sudden.”
I tipped my head to the side, not understanding his meaning. "That's not normal for him?"
"He says he wanted to get our current jobs completed so he can focus on the bakery as soon as the investigation is done."
"That's really nice of him." That was different than thinking he was avoiding me.
He turned to go. "I'd better get back to work. Let me know if you have any problems with the truck."
"I'm sure I won't. Thanks again," I called after him.
I didn't know Cooper that well. He usually hung around the Sterlings. If he was right, Morgan was working late so that he could work on my bakery, and he wasn't avoiding me like I thought.
I could relax and enjoy a day of baking. Humming now that I had a vehicle, I gathered my ingredients and stacked them in the bed of the truck. I drove into town, stopping at Meg's for a latte.
As soon as I came inside, Meg walked around the counter, her arms stretched out for a hug. "How are you?"
"I'm doing better. I have a truck." I pointed out the window at the red truck with the lettering Sterling Brothers Contracting on it.
Meg whistled. "A house and a truck. You're leveling up."
I laughed. "I'd rather have my apartment and the bakery than be in this situation. But I'll be okay."
She hugged me tight. "I know you will. You're strong."
I let out a breath. "I don't feel like it sometimes."
She moved behind the counter. "Let me get you a latte, and then you can bake."
I touched my chest and smiled. "My happy place."
She grinned. "Yours is baking, and mine is brewing. Although I think your job requires more skill."
"I don't know about that," I said with a smile as she moved around the counter, preparing my favorite latte.
"How is it living with the last standing Sterling bachelor?" she asked.
I wrinkled my nose. "He's not there much, so it's been fine."
She turned and raised her brow at me. "He was half naked the day I was there."
I looked over my shoulder as the bell above the door rang out, and a new customer walked inside. "That was a one-time thing."
"So you say."
"He's been working long hours to get his other jobs done, so that he can work on the bakery."
She set the cup on the counter. "You know when that will be?"
"We're still waiting on the fire investigation to be completed, but I hope it's soon." I took the cup and sipped the hot drink. "Thank you for this. How much do I owe you?"
She shook her head. "It's on me. Your bakery burned down. Just bake me something good today."
I grinned. "I'll bring you a box later today. I'm sure I'll want a break at some point."
She waved a dismissive hand. "Get your bake on."
I laughed at her familiar joke.
She turned to help the next customer, and I waved to her as I left.
It was a beautiful sunny day, and I felt a little better until I passed the bakery.
The windows were covered in cardboard, not because they were damaged, but because people were curious about the damage inside.
I wasn't prepared to deal with all the questions.
I put my head down and kept walking. The night of the fire was coming back to me.
How I'd woken up to Morgan screaming my name, so much smoke, and panic.
I couldn't breathe. But then Morgan was lifting me and refusing to hand me off to the firefighters.
I got a tingle whenever I thought about how he'd rescued me and held my hand while the paramedics took my vitals and gave me oxygen.
I hadn't told anyone how I'd felt in that moment, protected and cared for, and I'd liked it.
There was no question that he'd been there for me.
When he was holding my hand, it hadn't felt like a guy helping out his best friend's sister.
It seemed like we had a connection. But maybe that was how anyone felt when you rescued someone.
There was an invisible string that tied you together.
And it had nothing to do with attraction.
I opened the door to the town hall and made my way to the kitchen in the basement. There was a temporary sign over the door that read Sweet Dreams Bakery, bringing tears to my eyes.
I set the grocery bags on the gleaming stainless steel. This was mine for now. And soon, I'd have something like this in my bakery. It would be better than before. I could serve more clients than I ever had. It was time to elevate my business.
I much preferred thinking about my business that way, as opposed to feeling down about the situation. I could stay in Morgan's home and cry about everything that happened, or I could bake. I let out a breath. I couldn't wait to bake.
I heard footsteps, and then the double doors opened. "Reina!"
I hugged Eve. "I can't believe I get this kitchen all to myself."
Eve opened her arms wide. "It's yours for as long as you need it."
I pulled back. "I can't thank you enough."
She smiled. "It's just me working here. My office door is always open, so I get a few people coming in to meet with me, but otherwise it should be quiet."
"I hope you're okay with the place smelling like a bakery for a while," I said as I pulled the ingredients out of my bags.
She leaned against the counter. "As long as I can sneak down here and be your taste tester."
I grinned. "Deal. I'm sure I'll enjoy the company. I usually bake for a few hours by myself, but then I'm greeting customers for the rest of the day. But this will be different."
"You can visit me in my office anytime you're lonely. It will be a nice change if someone brings me baked goods instead of complaints."
I winced. "Is it hard being the town mayor?"
"I'm technically the town manager, but somehow, it morphed into mayoral duties. I enjoy it, but it's lonely. I'm going to like having you as a neighbor."
"You want to help me bring in the rest of the groceries?
The sooner I can get set up, the sooner I can bake.
" I hadn't made anything since the other night in Morgan's kitchen, and I was feeling restless.
I needed the release that baking gave me.
My life was imploding, but if I focused on getting these orders out, I could forget about the fire and the damage for a few hours.
"Absolutely."
It took us several trips to get everything inside, and then she helped arrange everything on the shelves. I'd had to order spoons, bowls, and a new mixer because most of my stuff was charred from the fire.
She moved toward the door. "I'll leave you alone so you can work."
"Thanks for helping me get set up."
"You can pay me with baked goods.”
"I'll run some up later," I said to her as she walked out.
I was excited to get started. I finally had a home, one where I could disappear and bake for hours, and no one would interrupt me. I wasn't messing up someone else's kitchen. This was all mine.
I was so grateful that this was available. It would allow me to fulfill existing orders and take new ones. I'd tweaked the online ordering system so that I could offer more options, things I would normally sell in the bakery, just in bigger quantities.
But I hadn't reached out to tell customers that I'd found a new kitchen. I would need to do that if I wanted new orders. I wanted the catering business to sustain me while the bakery was closed, so I needed to market myself, something I hadn't had to do since I opened.
Once people had known there was a bakery in town, the word had traveled. The storefront and the sign brought them in, and then the baked goods kept them coming back. But no one knew I was here.
I pulled out my list of orders and got to work on the first one.
When I was finished with each order, I placed it in the refrigerator, grateful that I had the space to store the items. Then I sent an email to the customers telling them their order was ready with instructions on where to pick them up.
I was humming, mixing ingredients for an order of four dozen cupcakes for a baby shower, when there was a knock on the door. "Come in."
I hadn't expected any visitors, and almost no one knew I was even here.
The door swung open.
"Mrs. Sweeney, you found me." I came around the counter to give her a hug. She was one of my daily customers. She went to Meg's for a coffee and then to the bakery for a pastry every morning.
She pulled back and smacked my arm lightly. "You didn't tell me you'd moved down the street."
I laughed. "This is just a space where I can fulfill some orders. I'm not officially open for business."
Mrs. Sweeney looked around. "Well, why not? Won't the mayor let you sell from here?"
I frowned. "I hadn't thought about selling like I do at my store."
"There's a lot of people who miss the bakery and you. You should set up a table out there and sell some things."
"I don't know. I'd have to talk to Eve about that." I'd sold items from a table before and used a payment service on my phone, so that part would be easy.
"You don't need anything fancy," Mrs. Sweeney said.
"Do you think that people would come here to buy pastries? I don't really have a space for them to sit and socialize."
"You haven't lost any customers, just your shop."
"That's a really good idea, Mrs. Sweeney. I don't have anything for you today but if you come back tomorrow, I'll have a few things ready."
"That's wonderful. I'm so glad you're back." She slipped out again, and I was excited about the idea of selling.
Could I set up a table outside the kitchen and offer a few items? Could I call Jill and see if she'd be willing to work? I'd have limited hours and need to fulfill the online orders. I could do it. As long as it was okay with Eve.
I turned on music and sang along to the lyrics while I baked cupcakes. Things were looking up, and it had nothing to do with the man I roomed with. He'd all but disappeared. But I was focused on making the best of a bad situation.
So far, I'd found a kitchen and possibly a place to sell my products both online and in person. Maybe this disruption wasn't going to be the end of my business after all. Not only would I come back stronger than ever, I'd prove to myself that I was resilient. I could handle whatever came my way.
If word got around that I was here, it could be a bakery of sorts. At least a take-out option for people. This was better than I imagined.
I'd imagined that I was building a little empire, something that could support me and any family I chose to create.
That maybe I'd have something to give one of my children one day or at least a business they could sell when I wanted to retire. I’d created something special here, and nothing would stop me.